We all know the adage “if it’s too good to be true, it probably is”. The “free” gift card scams fall right into that category. These scams aren’t new but just keep appearing in slightly different variations. I previously wrote about this very type of scam (see, “Look this “Gift Horse” In the Mouth: Latest Gift Card Scam!”; August 1, 2012).

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is very serious about fighting scams aimed at consumers. So it was no surprise, but was most welcome news, to read that the FTC has just filed 8 different complaints against 29 defendants in U.S. District Courts around the country . These defendants are alleged to have engaged in multiple “free” gift card online scams (see, “FTC Cracks Down on Senders of Spam Text Messages Promoting “Free” Gift Cards”; http://www.ftc.gov).

How did this scam work? The defendant-senders allegedly sent out more than 180 million unwanted and unrequested spam text messages to consumers. The spam messages tried to steer consumers to deceptive websites that contained the false promise of “free” gift cards. As with other similar “free” gift card scams, the promise was that the cards were for such major retailers as Target, Wal-Mart and Best Buy.

Consumers who clicked on the links were sent to other pages where they were instructed about the prerequisite steps before they could get the “free” gift card. Some of the links required consumers to provide sensitive personal information including health information; some instructed consumers to apply for credit; and others instructed consumers to subscribe to services. Some of the sites required home addresses so the “free” gift card could be shipped to the consumer.

So what did anyone get from providing any or all of this personal information or opening new lines of credit? Their personal information was sold to 3rd parties for marketing purposes.

There’s no guarantee, of course, that the FTC’s complaints will stop all of the “free” gift scams. But these are important and robust actions that send the right message.

I remember getting suckered in to these types of scams when they first started. Luckily when I was being asked too many questions I became suspicious and quit. Glad to hear the FCC is at least attempting to stop some of these practices. It is bad enough to have info given to 3rd parties for marketing purposes and then to be bothered with an influx of junk email. Worse it could open someone up to identity theft.